Step Into Your Light: Why Your Brilliance Is the Missing Piece Your Team Has Been Waiting For

💥 The Shattered Scene (The Problem You’re Facing)

You know that feeling when you’re holding back — just a little?
Not because you lack talent. Not because you’re unsure.
But because somewhere along the way you learned to shrink:

• Don’t be too much.
• Don’t rock the boat.
• Don’t outshine anyone.
• Don’t make waves.

And maybe you don’t say it out loud, but it shows up in your leadership:

• You hesitate before sharing ideas.
• You downplay your strengths.
• You apologize for being bold, fast, instinctive, visionary, direct, curious — YOU.
• You tone down your light to make others comfortable.

You cannot build a shining team from the shadows.

🌈 The Shine Ahead (The Transformation)

Now imagine this:

You stop apologizing for who you are.
You stop contorting yourself into a version that “fits.”
You stop running your brilliance through a filter.

🔎 The Spotlight (Key Insights)

Here’s what shining actually looks like (and it’s not loud, arrogant, or dramatic):

1. You honor your instincts instead of fighting them.
Kolbe gives you the roadmap. You stop apologizing for how you naturally take action — you embrace it.

2. You stop managing impressions and start managing clarity.
People trust leaders who are congruent.
Dimming creates confusion.
Authenticity creates alignment.

3. You model what psychological safety looks like.
You shine → they shine.
You hide → they hide.

4. Your strengths stop being “quirks” and become your signature.
That thing you thought was “too much”? It’s actually your differentiator.

5. You free others from the pressure of perfection.
When you show up as a beautifully real shard — jagged edges and all —
your team realizes they don’t have to be perfect either.

⚡ The Alignment Moves (Actionable Steps)

1. Name Your Brilliance Out Loud
   Write down your top 3 strengths — the ones that come easily.
   Say them without shrinking.
   Share them with your team.
   
   
2. Identify Where You Dim
   When do you hold back?
   Who makes you shrink?
   What situations cause you to soften your edges?
   
   
3. Lead With Your Instincts
   Revisit your Kolbe A™.
   Are you working with your instincts or against them?
   Adjust one thing this week to honor them.
   
   
4. Reflect Light, Don’t Absorb It
   Celebrate your people.
   Acknowledge their shards.
   Create visibility for their brilliance.
   
   
5. Choose Boldness Over “Blending In”
   This week, choose one moment to amplify yourself:
   Speak up.
   Share the idea.
   Lead the meeting.
   Turn up the light.
   
   

🌟 Immediate Sparkles (Quick Wins)

• Start saying “Thank you” instead of “Oh, it was nothing.”
• Replace “Sorry” with “Here’s what I can do.”
• Ask one team member: “What strength of yours do you want to use more?”
• Share one thing you’re proud of from this week. Out loud.
• Take 3 minutes to write: Where have I been shrinking? Why?

💡 Why the Light Matters

Because leaders set the tone.
You don’t create trust, clarity, and belonging by dimming yourself down —
you create them by showing what it looks like to stand fully in your brilliance.

• Your team communicates more clearly.
• Decision-making becomes easier.
• Roles become more aligned.
• Confidence replaces hesitation.
• Culture moves from fragment to cohesion.
• People feel safe to be themselves.

💬 Thoughts from Inside the Disco Ball